Niël Terblanché
THE hunt for the daring suspects who struck inside the Etosha National Park during Friday night has already started after the carcass of a black rhino that was shot and dehorned was found along the road that leads from Namutoni to Halali in the Etosha National Park early on Saturday morning.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Romeo Muyanda confirmed that black rhino was killed near the road where most of the visitors to Namibia’s premier wildlife reserve would pass if on a game viewing drive. The discovery of the carcass was reportedly made by a tour guide.
“What we could establish so far is that the suspects must have entered the park on Wednesday or Thursday night and that they shot and dehorned the animal during Friday night.”
According to Muyanda the incident occurred despite intensified operations by members of the Namibian Police, the Namibian Defence Force and the Anti Poaching Units resorting under the ministry.
“The joint task force patrols the park but the sheer size of Etosha makes it impossible for them to be everywhere. However the search for the culprits has already started,” Muyanda said.
About a month ago a helicopter of the NDF was used to run down a poacher that also shot and dehorned a rhino in the Etsosha National Park. After members of the anti-poaching task force tracked him for about two days the suspect was eventually caught in the commercial farming area to the south west of Otavi.
Muyanda said that another carcass of a rhino was discovered in the park shortly before the end of the week but added that the animal died of natural causes.
